National Republican., 1887-09-12

cneery, ana fascinating, ana elegant, IL ~
yery easy to entertain them; but when we find
In our guests that which Is antagouisLic to our
taste and sent iment 1t ts positive triumph
whenjwe can obey the wordsof my text and
be given to hospitality"
Another trial In the using of this grace is in
the toil and expense of exercising II. In the
well regulated household things go smoothly,
but now you have introduced 4 foreign ele-
ment into tho machinery, and though you
may stoutly declare that they must take things
as they find them the Martha will break In.
The joint that proves to be unmasticable The
delayed marketing. The perplexities OF a
caterer. The difficulty of doing proper work,
and yet always being presentable. Though
there will be care and there will be anxiety.
In 1904 the captain general provided very
grand entertainment, and among other things
he had fountain in his gardeu-a fountain OF
strong drink. In 1t were four hogsheads OF
brandy, eight hogsheads Of water, twenty-five
thousand ltmons, thirteen hundred weight of
three hundred toasted biscuits and a boat built
on purpose was placed in the fountain, and a
boy rowed around It, and filed the cups Of the
people who came there to be supplied: Well.
you say, that was luxurious entertainment,
and OF course the man had no anxiety; but l
have 10 tell you that though YOU had, or pro-
pose, an entertainment like that, you have
anxiety In that very thing comes the Divine
reward, We were born to serve; and when we
serve others we serve God The flush on that
woman's cheek, as she bends over the hot stove,
is assacIed in Gods sight as the flush on the
cheek OF one who, on hot day, breaches the
Gospel, We may serve God with plate, and
cutlery, and broom as certainly as we can serve
Him with psalm book and liturgy, Margaret,
had royal cup Of ten lips OH which was re-
corded the names of the guests who had drunk
from this cup. And every Christian woman
has a royal cup, on which are written all the
tained nd nee. ~, BY T., her s in Christian style
enas Seu are not o sns
Though the fare be plain cheerful presidency
Of the table. and cleanliness of appointments
win be good enough for anybody that eyer
vited to the house of II nobleman, He said
~ VIII come on one condition, and that Is that
you have nothing but potatoes on the table"
The requisition was complied with. Cyrus.
king of Persia, under the same circumstances,
prescribed that on the table there must be
nothing but bread. Ofcourse, these were ex-
that more depends upon the binquetters than
upon the banquet l want to lift this idea OF
Christian entertainment out OF a positive
bondage into glorious indueement;, Every
or foe,. you give directly tc
lie LopdR LspRp0se ess christ Wen ce to S
place this week, what woman in this house
would not be glad TO wash for Him, or spread
for Him bed, or bake bread for Him? There
the water from the well Of her own tears. He
is coming. He will be here to morrow. "In-
asmuch as ye have done II to Que of the least
Of these, my breathern, ye have done 1t to Me"
sentations of Walter Scott aud his friends, or
Washington Irving with his associates; but all
those engravinRs will fade out, while through
everlasting .inges, hanging luminous and con.
spieuous. will be the picture of you and your
Christian guests.
You see we have passed out from the trials
Into thn I'D s,f hetp Ia,
grand, glorious. and eternal. The first reward
Of Christian Hospitality is the Divine benedic
uo9; When any one attends to this duty
panion, upon his children, upon his dining
hall, upon his parlor, upon his NURSERY. The
blessing comes IN at the front door, and the
back door, aud down through the skylights
received. Christ said Ito His disciples !: "Ha
that receiyeth you. receiye.h Me, and he
ward" As we have had SO many things re
corded against Us In heaven 1t will be a salts
faction TO haye written on untailing archives
the fact that In the month Of May. or June, OF
September, or December. 1887, we made the
bifssful mistake of supposing that we were en-,
Pertaining weak men like ourselves, when 10
they showed their pinions before they Left and
We found out that they were angels unawares
Another reward comes in the good wishes
and prayers of our guests do not think ones
house ever gets over having had good man OF
woman abide there: George Whitefeld used
to scratch on the window Of the room where
he was entertained passage of Scripture, and
In one case, after he left, the whole household
was converted by the reading OF that passage
hs %IdEW pane The woman 81 H. shHnS%
and all the ages have heard the glorious con-
sequences. On a cold, stormy winter night my
father entertained Trueman Osborne, the evan
gelist. and through all eternity l will thank
God that Truemau Osborne stopped at oui
house. How many of our guests have brought
70 us COINCIDENCE and sympathy and help
There Is a legend told of Sc. Sebald that In his
Christian rounds he used TO stop for entertain
ment at the house Of a poor cartwright. Coming
there one doy he found the cartwright and his
family freezing for the lack of any fuel. 81
sebald ordered the man to go out and break
the icicles from the side OF the house and
bring them in and the icicles were brought
into the house, and thrown on the hearth. and
they began TO blaze immediately, aud the
free2ing family gathered around and were
warmed by them That was legend; but
how often haye our guests come In to gather
| up the cold. freezing sorrows OF our life, kind
| ling them into illumination. and warmth, and
| good cheer He who opens his house tC
Christian hospitality, turns those who are
there will be great changes in you, and there
| will be great changes in them. Some day
| you will be sitting In Loneliness, watching i
bereavement, and you VIII get 4 letter In a
| postOiilce mark, and say: why, don't know
anybody living in that city" ana you will
| break the envelope, ana there you VIII read
| the story of thanks for your Christian gene
rosity long years before, ana how they have
| heard afar OH of your trouble And the letter
| will he so full of kindly "reminiscences anc
Christian coincidence, It viii be plaster large
enough to cover up all the deep Gashes of you
soul. When we take people into our houses a
Christian guests, we take them into our sym
| pathes forever. In bort, Holland, q soldier
| with u sword ut his side stopped at a house,
desiring lodging and shelter. The woman
Of the house at first refused admlttanct
saying that the, men, of the hols'
| were not at home; but when he showed hi
credentials that he had been hOnorably dis
charged from the army, he was admitted ant
tarrled during the night. In the night tim,
there was knocking at the front door, anC
two luflans broke in to despoil that house
| hold. No sooner had they come over the doc
sill than the armed guest, who had prlmed hi
| piece and charged 1t with slugs, met them
| and telling the woman to stand back, | an
happy to say, dropped the two assaulting des
| peTadoes dead at his feet Well now there ar,
no bandits prowling around TO destroy ou
| houses but how often 1t is that we lind thos
| that have been our guests become our de
tenders We gave them shelter first, and theI
afterwards In the great conflicts Of life the!